


Hiss And Herps

by GracieHoltzbertTrash715



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-04
Updated: 2017-11-04
Packaged: 2019-01-29 10:03:20
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,352
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12628575
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GracieHoltzbertTrash715/pseuds/GracieHoltzbertTrash715
Summary: I'm kind of bad at summaries. Here's a fic where we find out about how and why Alice left the Southside. Betty finds her mom's diary from high school and she and Jughead read it. Contains BUGHEAD and FALICE / Rated M for language and mature content. TRIGGER WARNING!





	1. Dear Future Alice

Elizabeth “Betty” Cooper...the sixteen year old, picture perfect cheerleader who wrote for the school newspaper, a hobby started by her and her amazing boyfriend’s ambition to catch Jason Blossom’s murderer. She lived most of her life in an ideal, normal family household until her older sister became pregnant with Jason’s baby and dark secrets were soon unveiled. These were the moments her mother became an enemy in her eyes. She had always been a bit strict, but lately, with the mind of a rebellious teenager, Betty had begun to despise the woman who gave birth to her and brought her up with such tender love and care. Where had her attitude stemmed from all of a sudden? Why had her mother suddenly become so obsessed with keeping Betty at home at all times and away from the outside world? One could only guess. Though Betty wouldn’t have to guess for long.

One night, Elizabeth had found herself coughing and sneezing up in the family attic as she searched for an old photo album to show her boyfriend, Forsythe Pendleton “Jughead” Jones the Third. Searching through boxes of dusty old dolls and baby clothes, the blonde rolled her eyes at her mother’s insistence to hoard all of their memories into their, soon to collapse, attic. She waved a bit of dust out of her face after throwing a cardboard box of stuffed animals aside, finding another beneath it. The top of it read “Alice: High School.” Before even thinking of her option to NOT open it, Betty knelt in front of the box and began to look through.

Some old VHS tapes and 8-track tapes were piled up inside as Betty dug through them. She pulled out an old yearbook and opened to the dog-eared page. Smiling down upon the photo of her mother and father as prom king and queen, she suddenly frowned. Her mind had gone to a dark place, once again...something that had been happening all too often lately. The photo sent her to a flashback of her mother’s conversation with her about her mother and father’s eventful prom night. She remembered how FP, Jughead’s father, had almost let it slip that Betty may have a secret sibling out there somewhere and that dear old Dad had suggested abortion to her teen mother at the time.

Why had everything fallen apart lately? Why couldn’t Betty go back in time to before Jason’s murder and before Polly had gotten pregnant? Things were better then...for her, for her sister, for her father, for her mother. Well...wait! Betty had found something. Her hand felt a familiar weight in it and she pulled out, what she had rightfully guessed was, an old composition notebook. Otherwise known as….an old diary. Her mother’s. WERE things better for her mother before? Betty had to know.

With the knowledge that Jughead had been waiting for her long enough, she decided to only read the first page she opened to, intending on hiding it afterward to come back to it later for some more reading. Her thumb found a page toward the end and she opened the dusty thing to read what her eyes befell upon.

_“Dear Future Alice, I hope you’re still there. Lord knows it’s a miracle I’ve made it this far already. I’m sorry you can’t read so much about this passed year. So much has happened since...well, since that night. Well, you know. You were there. I...well, you...well...you and I….WE finally convinced our parents to move to the Northside after IT happened. We tried to run away, but we both know that didn’t go as planned. So, turns out we had to tell Mama and Papa the truth about everything. I couldn’t keep it a secret anymore. Not after...well, you know. So...here I am. 17 years old and guess what! Today is the day of our senior prom, Alice! I’d say I were excited if only I didn’t have to tell Hal the news. If you really ARE there, Future Alice...then you know that yesterday I took my first pregnancy test. I’m filled with joy, fear, and confusion as well as uncertainty. I wish time travel were invented already. Is it invented where YOU are? If so...could you please show up right now and tell me how I’m supposed to tell Hal that I think the baby might be FP’s?”_

Wide-eyed Betty slammed the diary shut the moment she read those words. Her long lost brother could, in fact, be Jughead’s long lost brother?! She looked around in shock before bolting out of the attic and heading to her bedroom where Jughead lay on her bed, playing with one of the knick-knacks on her nightstand.

The 16 year old outcast lifted his head upon his girlfriend’s arrival to her room. He smiled at her, though his smile slowly faded when he saw the look of shock on her face as she stood completely frozen in her doorway. “What is it, Betty?” He grew nervous as he noticed one of her hands behind her back. Betty used her free hand to close her bedroom door, locking it behind her. Jughead grew worried as he’d never known her to lock her door before, knowing her mother would kill her had she done so with a boy in the house. “What’s going on?” He asked once more with a shaky tone. Her pale, well...more pale than usual, face and refusal to talk was beginning to make his heart pound with aching anticipation. “Betty.” He spoke as she finally found the strength to move and sit on the bed beside him.

She stumbled over her words when she first tried to speak. “Re...remember how I told you that I have a long lost brother out there somewhere?” Her tone was eerily quiet and she spoke very slowly.

“Yeah. Why?”

Staring at the floor of her bedroom, Betty found it difficult to look at him if the writings in her mother’s diary were true. “Turns out...you may have one, too.”

“What?” He smiled, wondering if it were a joke. “A long lost sibling? Do I have another sister or something?” He laughed.

“No...Jug.” The intensity in her face caused his smile to vanish. “A long lost brother.” Her expression changed to a combination of hurt, sadness, and disgust all in one. “MY long lost brother.”

“Wh-what do you mean?” Jughead’s expression remained confused. Betty finally held the diary in his sight upon her own lap. Staring down at it, she bit her lower lip, feeling a stab in her heart upon the news. “What’s that?” Her disoriented boyfriend asked with a slightly panicked tone.

“It’s my mother’s diary.” She finally looked into his eyes with a hint of panic herself. “From when she was in high school.”

“You’re not-” Before Jug could continue, Betty opened the notebook to the page she had kept her finger in and handed him the book, indicating that he had to read it.

The air was painfully silent during and after he read the entry. He briefly took off his hat to scratch his head. Returning the crown back to his head of dark hair, he stood, pacing the room. “Jug.” Betty, freaking out herself, tried her best to stay calm.

“Might!” Jughead stopped midstep. “She said it MIGHT be my dad’s.”

“Yeah?” Betty watched him resume pacing.

“So...it could still be YOUR dad’s!” He said with hope.

“Yes, of course. But, Jug…”

“What?” He stopped again, looking down at her.

“It still COULD be yours. We could…” She swallowed, finding it disturbing to say. She almost whispered the rest of her statement. “We could have the same half brother.”

“Oh my God.” He said quietly to himself. “Oh my God.” He said a bit louder. “Oh my God!” He whispered loudly. “Well, does it say? Is it in the next entry? Who the father is?”

“I don’t know, Juggie! I stopped reading it.”

“Well, we gotta read more!” He lunged for the journal on the edge of her bed, but she snatched it quickly, hiding it behind her back again and she walked around to the other side of her bed.

“No. This is my mom’s diary. We shouldn’t have even read the one entry.” Though she felt more than tempted to find out herself, the good part of her knew that it was wrong to invade her mother’s past life privacy and she also wasn’t sure if she wanted to know the answer.

“Your mom and my dad?” Jughead was trying his best to wrap his head around it. “I wonder what happened there.”

“Jughead, no! We’re not reading anymore!”

“Well, we can’t ask them!” He pointed out.

“Why not?”

“Come on, Betty! We both have liars for parents. If we wanna find out what happened and if we somehow DO have the same brother...we’re gonna have to read that diary and we’re gonna have to read it now before your parents get home.”

Betty’s eyes widened once more and she realized...he was right.

*****************************

“What are you doing?” Betty asked, watching Jughead flip through pages of Alice’s diary on the edge of his girlfriend’s bed.

“I’m going back to the beginning.”

“You’re what?! No! We’re not gonna invade my mom’s privacy anymore than we really need to.” She tried to take the notebook back, but he extended his arm too far for her to reach, forcing her face to move closer to his. They suddenly stopped struggling and stared lovingly into each other’s eyes before leaning in for a gentle kiss. Soon, the gentleness grew to intensity, which suddenly grew to a very heated kiss and all at once, they both stopped.

“Wait! We, uh….” Jughead began.

“Yeah. We probably shouldn’t-”

“At least not until we find out more about this whole…” Jughead sadly smiled.

“Thing.” She finished for him with a light nod and a depressing grin of her own.

With a sigh, Jug turned to the first page and began to read aloud…….

_“Dear Future Alice, I didn’t want to write dear diary, ‘cause that always seemed kinda stupid to me. So….this is my first journal entry. You and I both know that this was a time in our life where things started to get a bit crazy. Growing up in the home that we grew up in wasn’t always easy or fun...but it definitely hadn’t been horrible until that first day of high school at Southside...when I first realized how I felt about HIM. The delinquent teenage boy who would change our life forever. Or so...I think. It’s only been a year, so I’m not quite sure where you’re at in all of this right now. Are you still with FP? I hope you are! Man, I love that boy! I don’t care if I have to be a Serpent anymore. As long as I can spend everyday with my Force of Protection (that’s what you and I call him because of his initials, FP, Future Alice), I don’t mind a little bloodshed. And hell, I’ve always loved being the tough bitch. Only this time….it may actually end in death. Sure, I love to beat the hell outta someone, but I don’t wanna be a killer. That was all evident after today’s events. You know what I mean. I won’t write it down though, in case the cops get ahold of this or something. Anyway, I’m gonna get back to my English homework. Hopefully I ace this test that’s coming and I can become the President of the Red and Black school newspaper. FP thinks I’m lame for being a nerdy gang member, but hey. I don’t always have to be part of this gang, right? Eventually I’ll get out and graduate and I’ll be the best damn journalist there ever was. Or maybe I’ll write a novel...or a movie! Hey, Future Alice, are you in Hollywood there?! That would be amazing!”_

“My mom was a nerd?” Betty choked on her words.

“Not just a nerd. A nerdy gang member.” Jughead added with a sigh. “A nerdy gang member in love with my father.”

Betty took the notebook and read another entry, a few pages ahead.


	2. The Page In The Book On The Bed

_“Hey, babe! You up for tonight?” Seventeen year old FP asked his girlfriend as he sat beside her at the lunch table._

_“Again?” Alice Austen looked a bit worried as she stared at the lunch table across the room._

_“Yeah. We said…” FP saw the terrified look on his lover’s face. “Hey...don’t worry, okay? We got you.”_

_“Why are we doing this? I have homework and a future that I have to be thinking about. So do you, Forsythe.”_

_The dark-haired teen pointed at her in warning. “Don’t call me that.”_

_Alice took one more look at the table furthest from them, The Ghoulies...a NEW rival gang that had begun to form in the past few months. At first, the gang had been but a rumor and no one knew if it were true or just a theory. Alice had been chosen by the head of the Serpents to go spy on them. Well...she wasn’t chosen at random. FP suggested his extremely smart lady friend to the man in chief and at first, she had agreed. It seemed like a simple task to her and she thought it’d be nice to get out and find more things to write about...but things began to feel uncomfortable for her. She had begged FP to get her out more than once and in the process of doing so for her...he had been beaten by his own fellow Serpents when he asked the boss for her relief from the task._

_“So are we good?” FP grabbed ahold of her hand and she finally broke eye contact with one of the Ghoulies to turn to her boyfriend._

_Young Alice’s eyes filled with tears and she immediately stood, rushing out into the hall. FP stayed behind for a moment to regroup himself. With a deep breath, he finally stood and followed her._

_“Alice!” He yelled down the hall. “Alice!” He yelled louder._

_She stopped, leaning her back against the wall and sinking to the floor with her knees up to her chest. Students walking by stared for only a minute before seeing FP in his Serpent jacket and they continued to walk on with haste. He finally caught up to her and stood, looking down at her as she did her best to breathe. Her panic attack had brought on real tears, something FP had never seen from the 16 year old in his life. He let the tip of his toes touch hers in her black combat boots and he reached down, taking hold of her hands and pulling her up for a hug. He held her body extremely tight to his as she sobbed into his chest and shoulder. He calmly shushed her and she closed her eyes, feeling nothing but his slow breaths and hearing nothing but his steady heartbeat. The ruckus in the hall had seemed to disappear to her and she soon found herself breathing normally once again._

_With a relieved smile, Alice pulled out of the hug, her back just centimeters from the wall behind her and she looked up into FP’s eyes. “Thank you.” She whispered. He had always been able to stop her panic attacks and she had no idea what she would do without him. He was the only one who knew how to handle her._

_Wiping away one of Alice’s tears with his thumb, FP leaned his forehead against hers as he spoke. “We’re gonna get you out of this, okay? As soon as possible.” He closed his eyes, still holding her hands in his. “I promise.” She heard the anger in his voice, but also the regret that he had suggested her to the boss._

_The dangerous tone in his voice sent chills down Alice’s spine and she bit her lower lip. Finally pulling her head away from his, she looked into his eyes with a flame in her own. “I love you.” She moaned as her left hand slid into the leather jacket’s sleeve at his wrist. Her nails seductively glided across the warm bare skin of his forearm under the jacket. Her right hand, still holding his left, squeezed his tighter and she pulled it up to her chin, putting one of his fingers into her mouth with a smile. Before pulling it out completely, she gave him a tiny bite and he closed his eyes with a sigh as she drove him crazy._

_“I love you more, you bitch.” He whispered back before slamming his lips into hers, pushing her back against the wall. Luckily enough, the hallway was filled with so much noise that no one heard them both moan before their makeout session was abruptly interrupted._

_“Hey! There you are!” One of the other Serpents ran out of the cafeteria to find them. He gave them a quick glare as he knew exactly what they had been doing, but he pushed it aside for now. “You better get in here.” He warned FP, who followed close behind, dragging Alice behind him, still holding her hand._

_When they re-entered the cafeteria, they weren’t too shocked to see that a circle had formed around two of the gang members, one, a Serpent and one...apparently a new Ghoulie. The crowd had begun to yell and throw things while some others took to chanting, “Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!”_

_“We’re not afraid of any of you!” The Serpent shouted over the noise._

_“Oh, you will be!” The Ghoulie yelled back._

_“Guys! Guys!” FP stepped into the circle with Alice and the other Serpent from the hallway. “Enough! Alright?!” Jones tried to calm them down._

_“What do YOU have to say for yourself, huh?” The Ghoulie looked to FP._

_“What?” Alice’s boyfriend asked with a lack of knowledge about the situation._

_“We know that one of your Snakes has become a rat.” The volume in the lunchroom had died down in the attempts to hear the dangerous drama._

_“What the hell are you talking about?” FP shook his head._

_“I’m afraid we have a spy in our midst. Which one of you is it? Huh? Did you recruit a secret Snake and then send them over to our turf to sniff out our drugs and our customers before sending tips to the police over on the Northside?” The Ghoulie accused._

_“We honestly have no clue what you’re going on about.” Another Serpent swore. “We didn’t send no spy to rat you guys out to the police. How stupid and hypocritical do you think we are?”_

_“Actually. Very.” He chuckled, stepping closer to FP and the first Serpent he argued with. He turned to Alice who stood diagonally behind FP and she squeezed her boyfriend’s hand even tighter. “I’m pretty sure I saw this skank at our place the other night….Thinking she fit in or was invisible or something.”_

_“Leave her outta this.” FP spoke through gritted teeth._

_“No. I KNOW it was you.” He stepped to the side, away from FP to face Alice. He reached up to grab a lock of her hair. “I’d recognize this horrible dye job anywhere.”_

_Alice felt FP’s body shaking in her hand, so she squeezed it tight, urging him to keep still. “Oh yeah?” She began, bravely squaring up with the Ghoulie. “And I’d recognize the lack of masculine hormones anywhere.” She intensely inhaled, dramatically closing her eyes before smugly smirking and speaking in an annoyingly bitchy tone. “Mmmm, I knew it…..You haven’t hit puberty yet.”_

_The crowd went wild and FP couldn’t help but let half a smile grow on the corner of his lips, proud of his girlfriend. That smile, however, was gone in a flash when the angry Ghoulie wasted no time in giving Alice a very violent backhand slap across the face, sending her to the floor. The circle of people gasped in unison as it grew completely silent. They watched FP fumble to Alice’s side as the rest of the Serpents present stepped into the circle. “Are you okay?” FP whispered, helping her up. When she stood, she nodded and removed her hand from her very red cheek. The moment FP saw the shade of her wound, he snarled, touching his own hand to it, wanting nothing more than to just hold her, but first…._

_“The whore is fine.” The Ghoulie laughed._

_All the crowd heard was a very loud and very deep inhale as FP immediately turned around, punching the Ghoulie square in the jaw and an all out brawl began between gangs._

*******************

Betty and Jughead spent all afternoon reading diary entries that they deemed relevant to Alice’s story up till now. Some entries seemed like nothing more than a teenage girl in love, while others sounded like something out of a horror film. Especially one in particular.

_“Dear Future Alice, I hope you have a therapist now, because tonight we witnessed our first triple homicide. Knox tried to force me to cover it up, but I just couldn’t. I just kept picturing the bodies waking up as we moved them or attacking us as zombies or something. I don’t know if I can take this anymore. Great-Grandma Ruth passed away last week and left my dad her house on the Northside. Mama and Papa wanna move there, because it’s safer, but I’m not so sure I can leave FP. Can’t he come with me? Future Alice, please help! What do I do? How do I leave my fiance behind in this awful place? I can’t fucking do it! He’s everything to me. I need him. He needs me. Let me know soon, okay? Hurry up and find that damn time machine to come help me! ‘Cause right now, I really don’t wanna go. Maybe I can convince my parents to stay until I graduate.”_

“Wait a minute! Fiance???” Jughead put a hand on Betty’s arm, stopping her from reading.

“They were engaged? And my mom witnessed murders?”

“And she may have covered some up.” Jughead added.

“I don’t know if I can read this anymore.” Betty set the journal down on her pillow and she stood, walking over to her vanity with her hands on her hips. She looked at herself in the mirror, thinking of how much her life has been a lie. She was now the one who was pacing and she began to bite her nails with worry. “Oh my God.” Jughead said very slowly with a hint of sadness as he stared at a page in the book, reading it to himself.

“What?” Betty looked to him. “No. I can’t read anymore of it. I won’t.”

“Well…” Jug paused, his jaw still left open as he shook his head in disbelief.

Betty noticed his eyes were tearing up. “What? What is it?”

“Oh my God.” He whispered once more, setting the book down and holding tightly to his hat, ripping it off. He looked at Betty with deep sorrow in his eyes and fought the urge to cry for his girlfriend.

“What, Jughead? You’re scaring me.”

“I think I know why your mother left Southside and….eventually left my dad.” He paused. “And essentially why she hates him now.”

“What? Why?” Jughead let out a long sigh that terrified Betty even more as her boyfriend stared at the page in the book on the bed in front of him.


	3. Snitches Get Stitches

_“Fuck!” FP cursed with anger as he kicked at a rock on the ground._

_Alice sat sideways on her boyfriend’s motorcycle seat with a cut on her lip and a black eye. She wiped away a tear before he returned to her side after walking off his anger. He took her face in his hands to get a closer look at her wounds. “I’m fine, FP.” She said, not too convincingly._

_“You’re done! Alright? I’m telling the boss today that you’re not spying on them anymore.”_

_“They’ll kill you.” She grabbed his hand._

_“Yeah. And the Ghoulies are gonna kill you! Am I not entitled to look after my future wife?”_

_“He doesn’t care about that!” The 16 year old girl retorted._

_“The Serpents are supposed to be a family. Ever since Ryder died and Knox took over, everything’s gone to shit!” He sighed, fiddling with her hand in his. “I should’ve never gotten you into all this.”_

_“Hey…” She put her forehead to his as he looked down in shame. “This wasn’t your fault. You wanted me to join the Serpents for protection. You did not know that Knox was going to turn into some monster, okay? Stop. Blaming. Yourself.” She picked his head up in her hands and gently kissed him._

_“Are you gonna tell me what the hell happened out there?” He finally asked._

_She sighed. “I was fine hiding where I was. But...they started taunting this little boy. It wasn’t too bad until they offered him some jingle jangle as candy and I stepped out to stop them. Then they let him go and they tried forcing me to have some. When I refused, that’s when they attacked me.”_

_Shaking his head, FP took hold of one of her legs and forced it to one side of his motorcycle so he could get on in front of her. “That’s it!” He put his helmet on and handed Alice the one that hung on the handle bars. “We’re going down there right now and I’m telling Knox that you’re done spying on Ghoulies.”_

_“FP-” Before she could protest, he started the engine and took off._

*************************

“Do I wanna know more?” Betty wondered from the chair in front of her vanity mirror.

Jughead sighed. “I won’t go as much into detail as your mom does here, but I will explain basically what happened that night.”

Betty nodded as Jughead read on, with a lack of detail of course, for Betty’s sake.

***************************

_FP and Alice rode into the parking lot of the Serpents’ bar. Immediately dismounting the motorcycle, FP grabbed Alice’s hand and pulled her inside, giving her no time to remove the helmet from her head._

_The moment they stepped inside, a meeting that was being held went silent and everyone turned to look at them in the doorway._

_“There she is!” One of the larger gang members pointed to Alice._

_“Where is Knox?!” FP asked with anger, ignoring the fact that he and his girlfriend were suddenly on the spot._

_In front of the bar, a well-built man in jeans and his Serpent jacket slowly stood, glaring at the couple. “FP, we need to have a word with your little friend there.” His low voice seemed calm, yet conniving._

_“And I need to have a word with you!” FP’s body shook._

_“FP?” Alice began to shake as well and she looked up at her boyfriend before realizing everyone in the bar was staring at her, not him. With a nervous giggle, she spoke. “What’s going on, guys?” She had never seen such scary expressions from them all before. Not toward her or another Serpent anyway._

_“Shut up, Snitch!” The first member shouted._

_“What? What are you talking about? I never-”_

_“Johnny?” Knox interrupted her._

_“Yes, sir.” One of the bald Serpents nodded to his boss and stepped close to FP._

_“You’re lucky my dad’s out of town tod-” FP began to say, but he was interrupted by a punch in the stomach and two other bikers grabbed each of FP’s arms, pulling him out of the circle that had formed around his girlfriend. “What the hell is going on?” He asked, watching Johnny step closer to Alice. “Don’t you lay a hand on her!” He struggled to get out of the Serpents’ grip, but couldn’t._

_Johnny walked in a circle around the 16 year old girl. She felt a panic attack coming but did her best to stay calm without FP beside her. The man much bigger than her stopped directly behind her and he slowly took hold of the motorcycle helmet on her head, taking it off and handing it to another member before smelling her hair. As he did so, he stared at a furious FP and he laughed before stepping back into the circle himself as Knox stepped in._

_“Someone….has been calling the cops on all of our hits AND letting Ghoulies know our stashing locations.” Knox rubbed his hands together in front of him as he slowly stepped closer to Alice. “Some of our merchandise has been going missing lately. And we think...that they were stolen by Ghoulies.” He was even closer and Alice’s heart began to pound. “We caught one of them tonight who says that they too, had been ratted on the passed few weeks. So...we can only guess that that means….we have a double-crosser around here. Someone who’s been pretending to be a Ghoulie AND pretending to be a Serpent, but lying to both sides.”_

_“Who-who is it?” Alice swallowed hard, blinking away terrified tears. She looked to FP, who struggled, now, between four Serpents._

_Knox laughed. “Who is it?” He repeated with amusement. He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a pocket knife. “It’s quite funny actually. The Ghoulie asshole that we caught tonight said that he and his fellow members think….now here’s the funny part….that it’s you.” Alice shook her head before being able to speak. “Now….at first, I thought that was ridiculous, because I was telling myself, ‘no, not adorable, sexy, loyal little Alice,’ but then it occurred to me. You have been spying on the Ghoulies for weeks now AND being a Serpent. So...that makes the timeline work out perfectly!” He stepped closer to her and FP squirmed even more._

_“It’s not me, I swear!” Her voice cracked. “The timeline thing is just a coincidence.” She nervously smiled._

_“Just a coincidence.” Knox repeated. “Hmm...yeah, I thought so too, but then I remembered that a little while ago, you sent your boyfriend up here to beg me to let you out. Now….why else would you do that, unless you were scared that soon, you’d be caught?”_

_“No!” She swore, tears starting to build up in her blue eyes. “I swear to God it’s not me! Alright?”_

_“You know what?” Knox opened the pocket knife, taking another step. “Swearing to God isn’t good enough for me.”_

_“I swear on my parents!” She said quickly._

_“Eh!” He cringed. “Teens hate their parents. I never believe them when they say that.”_

_She let out a sob as she forcefully said, “Then I swear on FP!”_

_“Ooooo!” Knox stopped walking and turned to her captured boyfriend. “Interesting.” He smiled. “You sure you wanna swear on your boyfriend?”_

_“Fiance.” She accidentally let out their secret. “He’s my fiance.” She looked lovingly at FP with a look of apology for letting it slip._

_“Fiance?” Knox laughed and the rest of the bar joined in the laughter. “Why didn’t I know about this little engagement?” He was now so close to Alice that he used the knife to play with a piece of her hair, then he put the knife to her chest, using it to pull out a necklace she wore. On that necklace lay an engagement ring. “Was it…” He faked a gasp. “...A secret?” Knox looked back and forth between the teens and he shouted. “Woop! Gang, it looks like we’ve got Romeo and Juliet over here!” They all laughed again._

_“Don’t you touch her!” FP shouted over the laughter._

_“Awwww! Romeo’s trying to save his Juliet. How sickening!” He turned to face her, their noses were inches apart. “Why the secrecy?” Knox gasped again. “Is someone knocked up?” He put the knife’s blade to the 16 year old’s stomach before putting his empty hand on it as well._

_“What?!” A tear left Alice’s eye. “No!” She swore. “I’m NOT pregnant!”_

_“You’re not?” Knox checked._

_“No! We just-”_

_He interrupted her with an annoyed tone. “You just love each other so much?” He made fun. “Blah, blah, blah! Whatever!” He began to circle her as he stared at FP. “So...you’re NOT pregnant, huh?”_

_“No!” She repeated._

_“Good.” He made his way back in front of her. “Then I can do this.” He lifted her shirt over her stomach and put the knife to it, digging in just a little to draw blood and then sliding the knife up, creating a line of blood._

_“You bastard!” FP fought to get out of their grip once more, but failed._

_“Tell us you’re the snitch!” Knox demanded._

_Alice shook her head in pain. “But I’m not!”_

_“Don’t lie to me!”_

_“I’m not!” She screamed. Knox was disappointed, so he used the knife to make another cut on the opposite side of her stomach._

***************************

“My mom always told me those scars were from her C-section.” Betty’s heart ached for her mother for once. “None of that was FP’s fault though. Why would she-”

“Just, wait for the rest.” Jughead sighed and read on.

***************************

_“You know what?” Knox said to the crowd of gang members after the second cut. “I actually think I believe that she’s not the snitch.” The crowd booed. “It’s okay, it’s okay.” He quieted them down and quickly looked back to her. “That doesn’t mean she doesn’t know who it is!”_

_“Yeah!” The rest cheered again._

_“Boys!” Knox looked to the four men apprehending FP. “Let him go!” They dropped him to the floor and he ran to Alice, putting an arm around her and using his bare hand to put pressure on her bloody wounds._

_“I’m fine. I’m fine.” She whispered to him as sweat dripped down her forehead._

_“Take her downstairs, boys!”_

_“What? No!” FP shouted as she was ripped out of his arms. “Alice? Alice!” He shouted as they took her away. “I love you!” He cried out and she was gone._

************************

Jughead stopped and sighed, putting his hand under his chin, not wanting to continue.

“Wh-why’d you stop?” Betty asked.

“It gets bad.” He barely whispered.

“It GETS bad? That wasn’t bad?” She put her face in her hands on her vanity desk.

“No. It gets REALLY bad.” Jug said and the room went silent for a moment as he watched his girlfriend’s left leg rapidly shake under the chair. “I won’t read anymore.” He set the journal down, putting his hands on his legs.

“No.” Betty broke the silence. “Read it.”

“Read it?”

“Yes. I need to hear it.” She crossed her arms in front of her and looked to him.

“Betty. No, you don’t.”

“Yes, I do. Please.” She swallowed. “I need to know why my mother is the way that she is.”

“But why?” Jug tried to protect Betty.

“Because, Jughead!” Tears fell from Betty’s eyes. “I’ve been horrible to her for so long! Maybe now I can understand and learn to treat her in a way that she deserves! And I need her to forgive me. I need to forgive myself.” She paused. “I need to forgive her and I can’t do that unless I know what she’s been through. I act like my life is terrible sometimes without even realizing that our parents had it worse. Please, Jughead? I need to hear more.”

Her boyfriend nodded for a while, regrouping himself and opening the journal back to the right page. “Okay.” He agreed and he sighed, reading on.


	4. Herping

_Down in the basement of the Serpents’ bar, 16 year old Alice sat tied to a chair, her hands roped to the arm rests and her feet bound to the two front legs of it. The Serpents had ripped off her Serpent jacket in the feeling that she could no longer call herself one after betraying them. Her white tank top had been ruined by her own blood underneath it and her wrists felt weakened by the tight ropes around them._

_“Talk!” Knox stood in front of her with his arms across his chest._

_“I swear I don’t know anything!” She promised, looking around at the other six bikers that accompanied them._

_“Do I have to get my knife out again?” He threatened and she shook her head no. He uncrossed his arms and leaned down, putting his weight on both of her arms so they could be face to face. “You know...I’ve known your parents a long time. They almost became Serpents once, but FP’s father didn’t want them caught up in shit like this. He was smart….Forsythe Senior. He still IS smart. He even got out of town when everything went to shit here with this damn Ghoulie stuff.” Alice winced in pain as his weight on her arms became unbearingly agonizing. “He’s not dumb like FP who got you into all of this. A pretty girl like you...I never would have allowed my girlfriend to join a gang.”_

_She spoke through the pain. “He did it to protect me! The Serpents used to be about protecting each other until you were suddenly in charge! He didn’t know you were a psycho!”_

_“Oh. I’M the psycho.” He finally backed away, walking around the small room as he chuckled. “I’m the psycho.” He repeated. “That’s funny.” He laughed, looking back at her. “You’re funny.”_

_“Just tell us who the snitch is.” Another Serpent spoke up from a corner of the room._

_“I don’t know who it is! And it’s not me.” She said once again before mumbling under her breath. “I’m not Knox. I wouldn’t act irrationally if I had a small-”_

_“What the fuck did you just say?!” Knox, angered, turned to look down at her with threatening eyes._

_“Nothing. I just said I didn’t rat you guys out. Nor the Ghoulies.” Her hands began to sweat and the pain in the cuts on her stomach caused her to whimper._

_“Topaz.” Knox said to the man standing directly behind Alice._

_The Serpent reached for the back of the teen’s hair and he pulled it. Alice shrieked as he did so. Topaz pulled her back so hard that the chair fell on its hind legs and he held her in place as she looked up at the ceiling and the one single light bulb over her. The gray haired Serpent held tightly to her hair._

_“Don’t drop her.” Knox demanded and Topaz nodded. “Keep her there.” He stepped forward and held onto her feet in front of him. “Now, listen to me, Missy. You may be tough, but we’re tougher. And eventually we’re gonna get the truth out of you. Tell us now...and we won’t have to torture you.”_

_“Oh yeah?” She strained her neck to look up at him, hating the feeling that Topaz could let go of the chair at anytime and she’d hit her head on the pavement below her. “What is it you’ve been doing this whole time if not torturing me already?”_

_One of the other Serpents laughed. “She’s got a mouth on her. I like it.”_

_Knox touched the cut on her lower lip from the Ghoulies with his thumb. “And quite a pretty mouth. Too bad she has this cut. She’d be flawless.” Alice closed her eyes, resting her head on the back of the chair. “Where’d you get those anyway?” Knox asked about the black eye and cut that she had before entering the bar tonight. “Not FP, I hope. Or…” He gasped. “...They’re from the Ghoulies, aren’t they? Now, why would they go and do that unless they knew you were the rat?” He shook his head as he tsked. “Do you know what herping is?”_

_“What?!”_

_“Herping. It’s when wildlife researchers go out and look for certain reptiles, such as snakes. Sometimes these wildlife guys are called herps, ‘cause they look deep into areas, even if it’s dangerous.” He took out his knife again. “When looking for a snake, herps will pick up certain things. Such as rocks and leaves. And even trash. They search deeply in the trash until they find what they’re looking for. Now you, little lady, are the trash. And we’re the herps who are gonna find whoever the snake is. Whether it’s a Serpent OR a Ghoulie...we’re gonna kill him.” He pressed the knife under her throat. “Or her.” He motioned for Topaz to let her chair back down on all four legs and Alice began to feel a migraine from the blood that had rushed to her head. “If we find out it’s you….you’re dead. Right, Serps?” He shouted._

_“RIGHT!” They all shouted back, startling young Alice._

_“Leave us.” He said to them. “I’m gonna get the truth outta this bitch.”_

_The Serpents all left, taunting her as they walked out and laughed. Knox followed them to the door and locked it behind them. He turned to look at her, playing with the pocket knife he still held. “Listen, kid. I don’t want to hurt you.”_

_She finally let out the tears she had been holding in and she sobbed as she spoke. “You already have.” She looked down to her bleeding stomach and longed to put pressure on it. Her tied up hands prevented that. She watched as he moved closer to her with the knife and she dreaded what he might do._

_To her surprise, he cut the ropes that bound her hands and feet to the chair. “Don’t try anything stupid.” He said as she rubbed her pained wrists before lifting up her shirt to look at the cuts on her stomach. When Alice touched one of her cuts, she hissed in pain and looked at the blood on her finger. Knox knelt in front of her and took her hand by the wrist, staring at the blood on her forefinger. He noticed that she was shaking. “Relax.”_

_The young female Serpent began to put her shirt back down when Knox reached out to touch the cut himself. He put his finger into his own mouth, tasting her blood. Alice watched with horror and confusion. Her voice cracked. “Can-can I go now, please?” She begged with discomfort. “I swear I don’t know anything. But, I’ll...I’ll help you find the traitor.” She faked a smile._

_“You’re really gonna marry that low life upstairs? You’re young. You shouldn’t be settling so soon.”_

_“I’m not settling. He’s the love of my life. Why does it matter to you anyway?”_

_“It doesn’t. I’m just curious.” He looked up into her fearful eyes and angrily pulled her wrist toward himself, changing his tone immediately as she gasped. “Tell me, bitch! Who’s double-crossing us?”_

_“I don’t know.” She cried again. “Why don’t you believe me?”_

_“Because I’m starting to wonder if you’re more afraid of the Ghoulies than you are of me.” He admitted, standing up and turning around._

_“And that’s something you absolutely can’t have, right?” She pushed her shirt back down and almost stood, but he turned around, looking back down to her._

_“You’re tougher than I thought you were, Ms. Austen. Perhaps FP was right, letting you join us.” He put his pocket knife back in his pants pocket._

_“Well...sometimes. I’m not as tough as I let on.”_

_“Don’t be modest. It’s obvious you’re a tough one, considering you refuse to tell me what you know.”_

_“What are you going to do to me if I say that I still don’t know anything?” She wondered as Knox turned away from her. She slowly stood, picking up the chair and quietly inching closer to him._

_“We’ll just have to find out, won’t we?” He began to pivot to look at her again, but before he could, using all of her strength, Alice hit him with the chair and he dropped to the floor. “You fucking slut!” Alice ran as fast as she could to the door, unlocking it. When she opened it, she was surprised to see all six Serpents guarding the door, looking down at her. “Boys.” Knox said, struggling to stand._

_The Serpents grabbed Alice and dragged her back into the room, one closed the door behind them. Knox bit his lip as he fell and when he stood, he felt the blood dripping from it. He glared at Alice as the men held her in front of him. With an angered puff of breath, he stepped up to her and slapped her across the face._

******************************

“I’m sorry. But Betty, I can’t read anymore.” Jughead left the notebook open on the bed, standing from it and walking over to the door.

“Jug, you’ve already read it once.”

“Yes, and I’m not reading it again. I...I’m gonna go home. You can read it if you want...but if it were my decision, I wouldn’t let you. But I’m not your controller, Betty.” He unlocked her bedroom door.

“Can’t you at least stay? And I’ll read it to myself?” She stood from her vanity chair and moved in close to him, taking his hand in hers.

Jug shook his head no. “I can’t be here when you read that. And I most certainly cannot be here when your mother gets home. I’m sorry.” He opened the door and attempted to walk out, but Betty pulled him back for a goodbye kiss.

“I love you, Jug. No matter what.”

He lightly smiled. “I love you, too.”

With a sigh, Jughead left and Betty closed her door behind him. She stood, staring at the door for a moment before she went back to her bed and looked down at the revealing journal. With a few deep breaths, she readied herself for what she was about to read.


	5. Senior's Return

_“I’m not gonna lie when I say that didn’t hurt, Alice.” Knox said, rubbing his injured head. “But I’m also not gonna lie when I say I didn’t like it.” He slowly reached for the zipper on his pants and pulled it down._

**********************

Betty gasped, setting the notebook down, unsure if she wanted to know anymore. But with a sigh, she uncomfortably read on.

************************

_“Tell us who the snitch is.” Knox demanded._

_Alice sobbed. “I swear I don’t know anything!”_

_“Boss…” One of the other Serpents grew nervous himself. “I think she’s telling the truth.”_

_“What’d you say, Fender?”_

_“I’m….she’s just a kid.” He whispered._

_“She’s not much of a kid getting knocked up by Junior, up there.”_

_“I’m not pregnant!”_

_“Well...not yet.” He grabbed the front of her shirt and the other Serpents let go of her as Knox threw her to the floor._

*********************

Betty continued to read in horror as her own tears streamed down her face.

_“...He touched himself right in front of me and made the other Serpents and I watch before he climbed on top of me. I never thought I could be defiled in such a way as I was that night, Future Alice. I hope tonight was the only time we’ve ever felt like that as well as the last time I ever see FP. Although...I wish I could thank his dad once more. He came back into town right on time to stop Knox from doing it a second time like he intended. I hope you’ve thanked FP Senior again, Future Alice. I still can’t believe FP refused to leave the Serpents...even after everything I told him.”_

**********************

_FP’s dad scooped young Alice into his arms and ran back up the stairs of the bar after he had knocked the boss unconscious. When he made it upstairs, he called out to his son. “FP! Let’s go!”_

_“Uh, Dad? When did you get here?” FP asked from the bar, surrounded by other Serpents who made sure he wouldn’t try to leave or save Alice. When they saw FP Senior, they let his son follow after him. “Alice?” FP Junior said to the girl in his father’s arms as they headed out to his dad’s truck. “Is she okay?” He asked. “What happened down there?”_

_“That doesn’t matter right now, FP.” Senior set Alice in the middle of the front seat of his truck and ran back toward the entrance to the bar. “You stay out here with her. I’ll be right back!”_

_“But Dad!” Before FP could talk, his father angrily went inside. He sighed before punching the hood of Senior’s truck._

_“FP?” Alice mumbled from inside the truck._

_“Alice?” He rushed to the open door and stood outside the truck, looking at her tired figure. “How are you?” Her eyes filled with tears again and she opened her mouth to speak, but couldn’t as she shook her head and sobbed. “Hey, hey, hey.” He climbed into the truck and closed the door. He wrapped his arms around her and she cried. “What happened?” He whispered._

_“I-” She tried to tell him, but they heard the sound of three consecutive gunshots coming from inside the bar. They both lifted their heads in fear before turning to look into each other’s eyes._

_Suddenly, the bar door opened and a terrified Knox came running out as the gang of Serpents followed him out, led by FP Senior who kicked Knox down the stairs. “And don’t you ever fucking come back here or call yourself a Serpent again! You don’t know what it means to be a Serpent!”_

_Knox turned, making direct eye contact with Alice in the truck. “Fuck you!” He screamed, pointing at her before turning and running away from the bar._

_“No! Fuck YOU, Knox!” Fender screamed after him._

_FP Senior handed the gun he held in his hand to one of the Serpents behind him. “I’m gonna take her home.” He said before the Serpents went back inside and he headed back down to the driver’s side of his truck._

_“Dad, what the hell happened in there? We heard gunshots.”_

_“They were warning shots.” Senior started the truck._

_“Warning shots?”_

_“Yes. Warning Knox that if I ever see his snitching, dumbass face on our turf again...those bullets were gonna be through his skull.” They pulled out of the bar’s parking lot and headed toward Alice’s parents’ house._

_“Wait!” FP started. “Knox was the snitch?”_

_“Of course he was!” Senior said._

_“So what the fuck was all of that back there with Alice?” FP wondered._

_“He was trying to get the heat off of himself by interrogating her. Why do you think I was gone this past week? I was gathering evidence against him.”_

_“So what he did to me...that was him-” Alice began._

_“That was just him being a disgusting asshole.” Senior held one of Alice’s hands. “Don’t you worry about him, alright? I already let one of the Ghoulies know what was going on. I’d be surprised if they didn’t kill him the second they get their hands on him.”_

_“What do you mean?” FP finally moved his arm out from around Alice’s shoulders. “What did he do, Alice?” The teen girl looked to the man driving, who looked to his son and then back to the road. “He didn’t-?”_

_“I’m afraid he did, son.” Senior said quietly as Alice pressed her shirt to the cuts on her stomach._

_“Alice?” FP looked to his girlfriend in the middle and she looked down into her own lap. One of her panic attacks was coming on as she nodded. Angered, FP punched the dashboard a few times, causing Alice to close her eyes as more tears rolled down her cheeks. Her breathing grew to be unsteady and eventually, she found it too hard to breathe._

_They finally made it to her house and FP opened the door as Alice pushed him out. She jumped down from the seat and bent over, leaning her hands on her knees as she took in deep breaths to calm down. Meanwhile, FP continued to punch the side of the truck or walk around kicking the ground. “I’m gonna kill him! I’m gonna fucking kill him!”_

_“FP…” His father stepped out of the truck and walked around it to his son and his girlfriend. “Killing him won’t help her right now.”_

_FP turned to see Alice, keeled over, and he came back into his right mind. He rushed to her side and helped her straighten her posture. He leaned her back against the truck and attempted to hug her tight to stop her panic attack like he always did. Senior watched as Alice angrily pushed her fiance away. “Alice.” FP said in shock._

_“I am done!” She finally yelled. “I’m done with the Serpents. I’m done going to that shitty school! And I’m done living here! My parents want to move into my Grandma Ruth’s house on the Northside and I had JUST convinced them to stay, but now I don’t know anymore.” She sobbed._

_“It wasn’t the Serpents’ fault, Alice.”_

_“Oh, don’t give me that, FP! Knox was one guy. They ALL could’ve stopped him if they wanted to.” She wiped away some of her tears. “I will stay here if you leave the Serpents.”_

_“Alice. Let’s be rational here.” He tried to reach for her hand, but she ripped it away._

_“I AM being rational! I’m not marrying someone who’s part of a gang that took part in my rape, FP! I think that’s pretty rational.”_

_“Okay, but blaming the rest of the Serpents for those six guys tonight, is NOT rational, Alice!”_

_“So, what are you saying? Are you telling me that you’re gonna stay a Serpent? Even after what happened to me tonight? And what’s been happening to me the past few weeks?” She waited for him to answer, looking back and forth between he and his father. After his hesitation to respond, she broke the silence. “Are you...are you fucking kidding me right now, FP?” She cried, but this time they were tears of anger. “Even after everything we’ve been through?”_

_“I’m not leaving my father, Alice. And with him in charge now, the Serpents will get back to their original morals, Alice. Please...stay.” FP begged, putting his hand on the back of his neck. He saw her shaking her head. He stepped toward her. “Baby-”_

_Stepping back, she whispered, “Don’t you ‘baby’ me.” Her piercing blue eyes sent chills down both his and his father’s spines. “As if this night couldn’t get any worse.” She scoffed with ridicule before turning to head into her house. The moment she reached the bottom step, she stopped and turned around. Her hand reached up to the ring on the chain around her neck. “The wedding is off!” She ripped the chain off and threw the ring at FP, shouting and turning to run inside._

***********************

Betty quickly slammed the book shut, looking around her room. The cute, peppy vibe around her once kept her calm. Though now...she felt nothing but pain and anger. Staring at the closed notebook in front of her, she made her hands into fists and her fingernails dug deep into the palm of her hands. Her breathing sped up and she quickly picked up the journal, throwing it at her body mirror which cracked. She looked around with rage as she stood from her bed.


	6. The Last Word

It was 9:30 at night when Hal and Alice Cooper arrived home from a work gathering. Hal set the car keys on their hook, closing the house door behind him. Alice headed into the kitchen to check the mail on the counter. She looked through the envelopes before setting them down and taking off her jacket. She walked into the living room and set her jacket on the edge of the couch before looking up the stairs. “Elizabeth? Elizabeth, honey, are you home?” There was no answer and she and Hal looked to each other with worry.

“Betty?” Hal called out.

“Elizabeth?” Alice yelled once more, with a hint of panic in her voice.

“I’m in my room!” They heard Betty’s voice sound throughout the house.

“Did you get the mail today, sweetie?” Alice asked.

There was a long pause before their daughter finally answered again. “I’m sorry. No.”

Hal and Alice looked to each other once more. “Hal, something’s wrong.” Alice’s motherly instincts kicked in and they started up the stairs immediately.

“Betty?” Hal called down the hall from his youngest’s bedroom.

“Betty.” Alice chimed in again.

They finally made their way to her room and when they looked into the open room, they stopped. Looks of shock and worry were plastered on their faces as they looked down at their daughter. Betty sat on the floor at the foot of her bed. One leg looked as if she had been sitting criss-crossed and the other leg sat propped up with her knee to her chest. She rested her chin on that knee and stared at the floor in front of her. Surrounding her on the floor were the remnants of her trashed bedroom.

“Oh my God, Elizabeth!” Alice stepped over Betty’s destroyed vanity. “Baby, what happened? Did you and Jughead have a fight, honey?” She knelt down in front of her. No answer. “What? No snarky comeback about how great the Jones kid is?” Still, no answer.

Meanwhile, Hal used his strength to pick up Betty’s vanity. He looked down at the composition notebook that lay in front of him. “What’s this?” He bent over to pick it up.

Alice turned to look back at her husband. “What?” She saw the object in his hand and her eyes grew wide as she turned to look at the broken body mirror, hoping she didn’t see what she thought she just saw. Her heart pounded faster and she turned to her daughter once again. “Elizabeth, I-”

“What is it, Alice?” Hal wondered, still standing near the entrance.

“Hal, can I have a minute alone with Betty, please?” Alice felt one of her old panic attacks approaching and she tried to breathe slowly, a technique she had to develop after losing FP.

“No, Mom.” Betty finally lifted her chin from her knee, looking to her mother and taking hold of one of her hands. “No more secrecy.”

“What do you mean?” Her mother wondered, shocked that Betty, of all people, would hold her hand.

“I mean...does Dad know?”

“Does Dad know what?” Hal asked, feeling out of the loop.

“He knows...most of what happened.” Alice said with a bit of shame.

“Sit down, please.” Betty said.

“What?” Mrs. Cooper responded.

“Sit down, please. Both of you.” She basically pulled her mother’s hand, forcing her to sit beside her. “We need to have a serious talk. I’m done with the secrets in this house.”

“Secrets about what, Betty?” Hal wondered, taking a seat on Betty’s turned over vanity chair.

“About everything!” She said with frustration and Alice began to see that normal Betty was returning to them.

“We don’t really have that many secrets, Betty.” Hal said from the seat in front of the door.

“Oh, you don’t? You don’t, Mom?” She looked to the woman by her side. “So...Dad knows about the rape?”

“The rape?!” Mr. Cooper looked down to his wife. “Alice, what is she talking about?”

“That book in your hand, Dad, was Mom’s high school diary. She didn’t tell you about how she was raped by a Serpent?” She felt her mother squeeze her hand. “And that was the real reason she left the Southside?”

“Is that true?” Hal asked as she began to cry. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I don’t know. I tried to...several times, but I could never get it out.” She sobbed, looking to her daughter beside her. “I’m so sorry, Elizabeth.”

“About what, Mom?” The teen with the pony tail let her knee fall to rest over her other leg.

“I wish you hadn’t had to learn about all this.” Alice looked down to the carpeted floor.

“Mom…” Betty did something Alice had not expected from the distant teen. She hugged her mother tightly, as if to stop an oncoming panic attack the way FP used to.

Hal watched as his wife cried into their daughter’s arms. “You were raped by a Serpent?” He repeated, more to himself.

The other two broke the hug and Alice wiped away some tears before looking back to her husband. “Yeah...while others stood there and watched.” Betty added, still holding her mother’s hand.

“And you wrote all this down in your diary?” He gestured to the notebook in his hands.

“Dad, don’t read it. It’s…” She shook her head, looking to her pained mother and setting a hand on her shoulder. “Does he know about FP, Mom?” She whispered.

“What about FP? The baby? Of course I know about that.”

“No, I meant the...engagement?” The moment she said it, Alice closed her eyes and let out a long sigh. Betty looked to her mom and then back to her dad. The expression on his face suggested he had not known. “You...didn’t.”

Hal stood up, pointing the notebook at his wife. “You were engaged, Alice?”

“Hal, I-”

“Psh!” Setting the notebook down on the vanity chair, Hal left the room while getting one last look at his wife on the floor.

“Dad, wait!” Betty started.

“Just let him go. Let him-” Alice sniffled, resting her right elbow on the bed beside her and resting her head in her hand.

“I’m sorry, Mom. I’m just...he should know. Keeping secrets in this house does nothing but destroys us when I think that we’re finally on track.” She bit her lower lip.

“No. You’re right. You’re right.” Alice took a deep breath. “There are just some things about my past that I’ve always been so ashamed of and I’ve never known how to bring them up, especially to you girls. I just…” She lifted her head from her hand and looked down into her lap. “I don’t know.”

Betty looked around at her utterly destroyed bedroom and let out a soft chuckle. “Sorry about my room.”

Alice sent her a fake smile. “Oh, that’s okay.” She choked out.

“So, Mom?” The 16 year old fiddled with her own foot. “About my half brother?”

“What about him, sweetie?”

“Is he Dad’s?” Betty’s tone subconsciously grew quieter as if she felt her dad were listening in.

“Yes. He is your father’s.” She sighed. “We had a paternity test done while I was at the sisters’.”

“May I ask what happened? You and FP broke up well before you got pregnant and well...you didn’t write anything down for almost a year. Did you...cheat on Dad with FP?” She couldn’t help but whisper.

“My life took a huge turn after the events of that night and after your grandparents and I moved to the Northside. FP and I did not talk for a long time after that. I had finally started to fit in at Riverdale High and I was Vice President of the Blue and Gold. Your father was the President.” Alice smiled. “He was constantly asking me out.” She chuckled and Betty smiled at the cute detail. “I just...wasn’t ready to be around men at the time. Not like that. I was still COMPLETELY infatuated with FP and every time I felt, you know…’desire,’ I would remember that night at the bar and I’d feel physically ill. But eventually, I came around to your father and things began to look up for me again. I threw away all the black tough-girl clothes and jeans and put on some preppy-girl pink skirts and baby-blue dresses. I stopped dying my hair black and let my blonde curls come out. Everything was going great until…”

“Until what?” Betty wondered.

“Forsythe Pendleton Jones the Second. He transferred to Riverdale High.” Alice reminisced in old memories.

“What was your reaction?” Elizabeth leaned her head against the end of her bed.

“I was terrified. I thought things about me that I hadn’t wanted anyone to know on the Northside would be revealed. But I was also a bit excited. I thought he had left the Serpents and secretly hoped things could work out again...until I realized he was still a loyal snake.”

“And the baby?” Her daughter hurried her to the interesting part.

Alice sighed as if disappointed in herself. “Well...it was a few weeks before prom. I had already had plans to go with your father and I was bringing some decorations for the dance into the school. Hal was out with some friends and it was getting pretty late.”

_************************_

_“Hey, Alice.” The young ex-Serpent girl jumped, heading into the school with a full box in her hands._

_“FP!” She said with a scared sigh. “What are you doing here?”_

_“I was just waiting for Fred. We have band practice at his place later. He asked to meet him here after he got done with football practice.”_

_Alice tried to act like his presence was no bother to her and she shrugged. “Oh! Don’t you have anything better to do? Like homework, or something?” She began to pivot her body as if to leave him out in the dark school parking lot, but he spoke._

_“Mmm, no. What about you? What are you doing out here all alone? Doesn’t your boyfriend take care of you?” He teased._

_“For your information, Forsythe…”_

_“Don’t call me that.”_

_Alice continued, brushing off his interruption. “Hal takes very good care of me. Besides...I don’t need to be taken care of.”_

_“I know you don’t.” He took a cigarette and lighter out of his pocket. Offering one to her, he lit his own and put the lighter back in his pocket when she refused._

_“I quit.” She told him._

_“Of course you did.” He chuckled._

_“What’s that supposed to mean?” The box full of decorations in her hands began to feel heavier._

_“Nothing. Nothing. It’s just fun to see you in your new life, that’s all.” He looked far off into the distance passed her shoulder, leaning against his motorcycle’s handlebars._

_“You act like I had a choice.” She pointed out, shifting the box in her arms._

_FP pulled the cigarette out of his mouth with two fingers before exhaling smoke into her face. “Ditto...how was I supposed to leave the Serpents when my dad became the new leader, huh?”_

_“I’m not doing this right now...they’re gonna lock the school doors soon.” She rolled her eyes and headed for the double doors._

_When she struggled to open it, FP threw his cigarette on the pavement below and ran to her aid. He opened the door for her and she walked in. FP followed. They made it to the janitor’s closet near the gym and, using the key she was given, Alice unlocked the door while FP held the box for her. She opened it and let him in first. “Where do I put this?” He asked, looking around._

_“You can just set it on the table over there.” She pointed out and he obeyed._

_After setting down the box, FP turned to see her staring up at him with those enchanting blue eyes...the ones that got him everytime. “Alice...I need to apologize for what happened that night. And for my behavior afterward. You were right. Leaving the Serpents was the best thing for you and I’m so proud of how you’ve grown these past few months.”_

_She stood with her arms across her chest as if she were hugging herself. “Leaving the Serpents would’ve been good for you, too.”_

_He shrugged, putting his hands in his jean pockets. “Eh...I don’t know. I can’t really see myself as a perfect boyfriend like Harold.”_

_“Hal.” She corrected with a roll of her eyes. She knew he said it wrong on purpose. “And he’s not perfect all of the time.” She looked down and to the side, remembering the fight she and Hal had that morning._

_“Why are you with him?” FP blurted out._

_“What?” She looked back up to him._

_“Why are you with that guy? You know you’re my one and only...and I’m yours.” He moved forward, bringing himself eerily close to her._

_“Things are different now.” She took one step back. “I’m different now.”_

_“No, you’re not.” He took his hands out of his pockets and grabbed hers. “I know that you’re still the same kickass, bitchy, sexy, and amazing girl that I knew before all of this….pink.” He looked down at her little hands inside his and she did as well. He let go of one of them and reached into his coat pocket, pulling out the engagement ring she had thrown at him months ago. “I know you’re still my Alice in Wonderland and I know that you still want this ring.”_

_She stared down at it in disbelief. “FP, I-”_

_“Marry me, Alice. Please?” He looked into her eyes and her mouth lay open. “We still love each other, Austen. You know that we do.” He took hold of her left hand and tried to put the ring on her finger, but she pulled it away, stepping back again._

_“I-I can’t FP. I’m with Hal now.” She sadly bit one of her fingernails. “And...you’re still a Serpent.”_

********************  
“I couldn’t believe he still had the ring. After throwing it at him that night, I turned and went inside so fast that I didn’t even know where it landed.” Alice put one hand to her forehead and rubbed it as she told the story.

“Wow. Oh my God.” Betty was shocked at how romantic FP was.

**********************

_“Come on, Alice. Take it.” FP held the ring out in front of her. “You can say no to the proposal, but at least take the ring. I got it for you.”_

_She stared down at it with tears in her eyes. “I can’t.”_

_“Why do you have to be so stubborn?”_

_“Why do YOU have to be so persistent?” She retorted. “You know what? Fine! I’ll take it!” She ripped the ring out of his hand and put it on her right middle finger. “There! Happy now?” She squinted at him._

_“Very.” He smirked and Alice lifted her middle finger, containing the ring, at him. “There she is!” He laughed._

_“You’re still an ass!” She shook her head._

_“And you’re still a bitch!” He nodded._

_“Why did you transfer here anyway?” She finally asked him._

_“Just to hear you ask all of your wonderful questions, babe.” He teased again._

_“Can’t you answer anything without a joke?” Her hands moved to rest on her hips._

_“Oh, look...another question.” He clapped three times and she rolled her eyes, turning to leave._

_“If you’re not gonna be serious, then I’m just gonna go.” She put her hand on the door handle with her back to him, just about to leave._

_“We were always fighting, weren’t we?” His tone was meant to be a joke, but she heard the sadness behind it. “Is that why you won’t marry me?”_

_She looked over her shoulder, back to him. “We weren’t ALWAYS fighting.”_

_“It was pretty bad sometimes.” He admitted._

_She turned around to face him again, her hand still on the door knob. “Well...you were always picking fights.”_

_“No, I wasn’t.” He took one step toward her._

_“Yes, you were.” She argued._

_“No, I wasn’t.” He argued back, taking another step closer to her._

_“Uh, yes. You were.” She watched him slowly step forward._

_“No.” He squinted. “I don’t think I was.”_

_“You’re picking a fight right now, FP.” She raised an eyebrow at him while fighting back a smile. “Why do you constantly do stuff like this? Especially when you know I have to have the last word? And you know I’m trying to leave?” She watched as he stopped directly in front of her, their chests almost touching._

_“I don’t know...Maybe I never want you to leave.” He admitted. “Maybe I miss you too much.”_

_She couldn’t resist standing on her tippy toes and attacking his lips with her own. Pulling out of the kiss, she admitted, “I missed you too.”_

_They both smiled and she slammed the door shut behind her as he lifted her up and brought her over to the table._

*****************

“And that’s when I thought we might’ve conceived your brother. But...luckily, for you and Jughead, it was not FP’s.”

“And that’s why Dad wanted you to get rid of the baby?” Betty asked, beginning to understand things now.

“Yes. That AND we were way too young to raise a child.” Alice slowly nodded.

“And that’s why you never wanted me and Jughead to be together.”

“Well, kind of. But I also just have trouble thinking of you hanging around Serpents after what happened to me. Not all of them are bad people, of course, but that doesn’t mean there are no bad people involved with them.”

Betty turned to face her bedroom door again and it was silent for a moment while she stared at the floor. “Oh my God.” She said in a tone of realization. “I’ve been so awful to you.”

“Betty, honey...all teenagers rebel at some point.” Alice tried to justify.

“But, Mom...what I’ve done wouldn’t really count as rebelling. I almost made enemies out of us.” She sadly looked into her mother’s tear stained eyes.

“Elizabeth, sweetie.” She held both of Betty’s hands between them. “You didn’t know any of my motives or about the darkest part of my life. I forgive you.” She kissed one of her daughter’s hands.

“But…” The one with the pony tail began. “I don’t know if I can ever forgive myself.”

“My sweet, sweet girl.” Taking a deep breath, Alice pulled her youngest in for another hug and she rubbed the teen’s back to comfort her. “I love you, Betty.”

Elizabeth sighed during the long hug and she finally replied with all of her heart. “I love you too, Mom.”

THE END.


End file.
